Grateful Dead

Blair’s Golden Road Blog - “I’d Love to Turn You On…”

By Blair Jackson

No, not that way. That’s a topic for another time, for sure. But this week I want to talk about the challenges, perils and triumphs of trying to turn friends on to the Grateful Dead.

In my own case, I had an older brother with hip musical tastes who brought home Aoxomoxoa some time in the summer of 1969. I gave it a few spins but wasn’t that impressed. I loved “St. Stephen” immediately and “China Cat” and “Mountains of the Moon” grew on me, but frankly the album didn’t compel me to listen to it much. Still, the word on the street in ’69 was: “You gotta see the Dead in concert, man!” When Live Dead came out that November, I was intrigued that it had so few songs spread over four sides. I was a huge fan of long guitar solos and assumed the paucity of songs meant there was probably a ton of jamming on it. And there was “St. Stephen” kicking off Side Two, so I plunked down my five bucks (double-album price) at the nearby E.J. Korvette’s store (where I bought most of my records) and took that baby home.

It was love at first spin. I practically wore out the first three sides of Live Dead the first few months I had it (it took me a while to get into Side Four, with “Death Don’t Have No Mercy” and “Feedback”). I bought Anthem of the Sun shortly after that and was nuts about it, too. In March of ’70, I finally got to see the band at the newly refurbished Capitol Theatre in Port Chester — half an hour up the road from my suburban Westchester County, NY, hometown— and that was my first exposure to the warm and intoxicating unreleased songs from Workingman’s Dead. That night profoundly changed my life, and then Workingman’s Dead, American Beauty and my first Dead shows at the Fillmore East sealed the deal and set me on a course that has led me here, still championing the Dead, 42 years later.

The Dead hooked me so hard I naturally wanted to share my passion with my good friends. In those days, my neighborhood pals and I spent countless hours in my basement listening to records; it’s what we did for fun. Unfortunately, none of my immediate crowd liked the Dead. I played them everything I could think of to try to convert them, but for some reason it just didn’t stick. No doubt I was obnoxiously passionate about it, a musical zealot trying to win followers to his cause. After a while I was effectively banned from playing Grateful Dead records in my own basement when my buddies were around! That was OK—there were loads of other groups we all loved, and I also had no problem spending hours alone listening to the records I loved best, my head between the two speakers on my cheap stereo setup, my trippy homemade light box flashing color patterns on the white sheet I put up on one wall.

When I headed off to Northwestern U. in the fall of ’71, I found a few kindred spirits who were into San Francisco rock on my dorm floor in Elder Hall and we bonded immediately and enjoyed many spirited adventures together. But we also encountered considerable hostility from people who hated the Grateful Dead. We used to have little record wars, where I might be blasting Live Dead, “Skull & Roses” or Quicksilver’s Happy Trails, and my annoying (and annoyed) neighbors two doors down the hall would retaliate by cranking up Emerson Lake & Palmer, Jethro Tull or Yes. It was acid rock vs. prog rock in a fight to the deaf, and it drove the pre-med freshmen who wanted to study for their organic chemistry tests crazy.

A couple of years later I moved to Berkeley to complete my undergraduate degree, and at last I felt like I’d found a place where I wouldn’t be ridiculed for liking the Dead. After all, the Bay Area was crawling with Dead Heads. But as I quickly learned, there are Dead haters everywhere, and by the late ’70s I’d heard all the anti-Dead arguments a million times—they can’t sing, their songs are weird, they’re boring (“What’s with the all that aimless noodling?) hippies are passé, yada yada. After a certain point I decided to stop proselytizing, figuring if this person or that was “meant” to get into the Dead, it would happen without my urging.

Even so, I had a number of experiences—particularly in the ’80s—urging non-Dead Head acquaintances to check out shows at cool places like the Greek in Berkeley or Kaiser in Oakland. Unfortunately, if they were sitting with me, I found myself spending an inordinate amount of time worrying about whether they were having a good time or bored stiff (I’d think, “Why is she just sitting there?”) or baffled. It was better when I didn’t have to actually be with them. I could deal with their often odd opinions — favorite song was “C.C. Rider”; went on a bathroom run and completely missed the “Terrapin”; left after “space” because it was a work night — much better a day or two later over the phone. “Yeah, whatever. I agree — the Dead aren’t for everyone,” I’d say.

“If this doesn’t get you into the Dead nothing will: I’ve made you a special tape of all 57 live versions of ‘Day Job’ played between 1982 and 1986!”

Playing tapes for the uninitiated in a car (a captive environment!) was tricky because, well, a lot of the singing was bad, and there were clams and blown transitions and that “Uncle John’s Band” — a song they might know — didn’t sound nearly as good to them as the version they’d heard on Workingman’s Dead. And no one but a hardcore Head wants to hear an audience recording of a live show: “What’s wrong with the sound?” Even with a great-sounding tape it became a guessing game: They’ll probably like “Bertha” (everyone likes “Bertha”), but the “Black-Throated Wind” that comes next is kinda strange and that Pigpen “Good Lovin’” goes on for 17 minutes, and if you’re talking more than listening in the car, it’s a slog. Better to play something everyone can agree on — Graceland!

Now we’re 17 years down the line from there even being a Grateful Dead in the world, but new people are still discovering them all the time. Hooray! How does that happen today? I find that I have no better idea these days of how to turn somebody on to the Dead than I did when I was a pushy teenage acolyte. Are Workingman’s Dead and American Beauty still a reliable gateway? For some, no doubt—so many of those songs are bona fide classics. Would a dynamite ’77 show flick the switch in someone? What if I made a mix-CD (or iPod playlist) of carefully selected tunes from different eras? Can I expect someone to listen to two or three CDs worth of material? (Probably not.) Is a flowing ’69 “Dark Star” more palatable to the non-fan than a dissonance-filled ’72 epic? Or should we wait to spring “Dark Star” on them later? It’s hard to go wrong with a zippy “Scarlet-Fire” or “China-Cat-Rider,” but can they make it through “Stella Blue”? Would taking someone to a Furthur or Phil & Friends or RatDog show provide a good entry point to the Dead universe? Is a consciousness-altering agent of some sort required?

What’s been your experience? What do you do when you want to introduce someone to the Grateful Dead? What has worked and what didn’t.

Comments

I have been lucky to have turned some folks on...."look at that man dressed in green aiko aiko ...he's not a man he's a lovin machine"....no but seriously.

I would have to say that mind expanding agents help for sure.

Luckily i was able to turn my wife on post Jerry. She loves em and it would be weird to be married to someone who didn't understand the passion for the band. I took her to rosemont warren Dead tour 2009, where we mushed out. After the first song she looked at me and and was like...I totally get it. We were just dating at the time. Then two days later we were back in Denver, Pepsi Center show, a mellow show but a spine shivering china doll and then Whiskey in a jar, her being Irish it sure felt like their were greater powers at work. She has been on the bus ever since.

We've turned several people on, one of her girlfriends from Boston has become obsessed, flying out for every red rock show and doing lots of reading. She just got married (mixed marriage for sure, classic Jock guy) but she thoroughly enjoys it, she has had fun experimenting as well with lots of different things which are fun however she and my wife (without me) went to the orphium a couple of years ago and experienced their first sober show which really lets you know, wow these guys really are awesome and it isn't just the concoctions making it so. With that i would say that the concoctions (whatever your flavor) really does help the first time. I mean these guys were exploring the depths of drugs while exploring the depths of music and sounds, they got it and really know how to bring it all home, everything just makes sense, it just works.

We flew out to outside lands a couple of years ago and my buddy brought his longtime brazillian girl, we found some very clean stuff and the terrapin and morning dew were mind blowing, i can still see Jeff's keys showering down in a colorful musical pattern at this moment.

With that a couple of years ago one of my friends just married this israili guy and he too couldn't stop shaking his bones. so Ive been lucky, especially with Furthur coming onto the scene. they are a good band and do homage to the Grateful Dead. I think live is a must, through tapes it is hard to do, you just need to interact and feel it to truly grasp it.

We are flying out to the Wang for the friday show (I can't wait, the venue looks gorgeous, a most appropriate place to see the boys....and sunshine:) and The girl from the mixed marriage will be with us (7 months pregnant) she is super excited to dance and rub her belly and stuff that pregnant people do when getting a show. My wife will be with her and i will be with my brother in law who is an X marine. Yes ladies and gents I'm going to get em:) He likes to have a good time so we have that part done, he also plays some guitar and has a great ear for music (just like his sister) so that is done, and lastly a couple of years ago he and i were connecting since we were becoming family and he was like yeah i know some dead they have a few good tunes and I asked him what his favorite song was (expecting uncle johns, ripple, trucking or something of that nature) and he belts out "Wharf Rat". So i think we have a good shot at it; but, we may find some conscious expansion stuff, it just goes so well together especially for the newbians:)

So, I feel a bit behind the times now, in wanting to build a mix of every St Stephen I can lay my hands on .... it'll have to include the segues, and the in betweens of course, plus anything else I fancy to just add the occasional pinch of variety or excellence.

I was hoping it would also provide an interesting intro to the Dead for anyone wanting to listen too

I guess it doesn't have to be St Stephen, but that was what took my fancy.
I just love that song don't have a clue what it's about, or why it's soooo gooood

I think that release (perhaps the best of all archival products) now works best to reel 'em in. Used to be Skull and Roses and Europe '72, and I think in general the 1970-72 releases are irresistable to curious and open-minded music lovers.

...to no avail. So far my 7 year old son has been the most receptive. He loves the Truckin' from Winterland in 73. The buildup at the end blows our minds every time we listen to it. Unfortunately most people around here listen to what ever top 40 crap the radio dishes out. Gaga, Nickleback, Black Eyed Peas etc. It all makes me want to puke, but what can you do? It's not their fault I guess. On a different note, The Sheepdogs are a real boss band from Saskatoon. You should check them out. I can't seem to get enough lately.

When I was turned on to the dead in summer of 1977 I had been going to any and all shows at msg or nassau coliseum. Seeing the dead was a band to add to the "saw live" collection. They slowly grew on me and I eventually yearned for nothing else,musically. I thought about the bands I used to see and thought their fan base would love the dead. I would try to get anybody to "see" and hear what I loved. After a while it was easier to hang with and find new friends that lived for what I lived for. As time went on I would hide the fact that I was a head. If and when it came out people would say "you're one of those who follows them around?" and I would love to say "No, sometimes I get there first". I also realized that if I didn't try to convert people to the dead experience it would be easier to get tickets so I gave up trying early on.

I was busy trying to turn on a housemate to the Dead, and convinced him to come with me to Redrocks. We were flying from Chicago, and I boasted that there will be Heads on the plane. He did not believe that a random flight Chicago to Denver would have other Heads, nor did he believe that anyone other than me would be so crazy to travel so far for a show. The flight takes off, the fasten the seat belt sign goes off....and immediately two head appears from the seats ahead of us saying "Hash brownies?" My friend was awestruck....and soon also wasted! Now that I an involved with lots of folks with varied "advanced" musical tastes I need to pick what Dead to play for them carefully. THose coming from a punk aesthetic hate the dead cus they think all the music is "hippy-dippy". I play them hard jams with punk-like rhythms and driving drumming. Others coming from experimental music I play, well, exploratory jams with atonality, hints of serialism, musique-concrete, etc. The jazzers, well a tight eyes jam.... It actually reveals the many facets of the dead. For my family, well my kids as infants would only calm down to Uncle John's Band, and to this day it is in the car's regular rotation.

Perhaps Johnny B Goode and 'modern' versions of Good Lovin are two of the Grateful Dead performances with the broadest appeal. If those don't work, the old reliable is to strap people down and perform a sonic Clockwork Orange type of experiment. Battle to the deaf indeed.

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